I've noticed downwind sailing with the TI is a bit hard especially in light wind. I was thinking of adding a boom of some sort.

The idea... and I believe I saw a similar idea on youtube at some point. find fabric similar the sail..sew a cavity at the bottom of the sail, slide in an old tent pole and secure ends similar to the way the current battens work. One major negative - cannot roll up sail on the fly

So here are my specific questions:- Can the boat structure handle the extra force? I'm assuming a flex tent pole would add some force on the mast and base?

- Would a boom similar to above help with downwind sailing? I know adding a barber hauler, bungie or the like may help with this as well.

- What improvements would a boom have on upwind sailing? I forgot to mention I have limited sailing experience, maybe 2.5years all on the AI and TI. It seems the best tacks I have are almost perpendicular to the wind not at the 45degrees you hear so much about. this could be just inexperience. I'm assuming a boom may help for upwind sailing>

A boom can help your sail shape and when sail shape is improved you go faster. When my wife and I were both sailing AI's I would sometimes grab the clew of my sail and pull down on it going to weather and that would cause my lowest set of tell tails (I have 3 sets) to stream back and the boat would pick up speed. But when I say pick up speed I am talking about a tenth of a knot or less but it would allow me to gain on my wife.

That being said I was looking for the right hardware to build one at West Marine this afternoon. But if I build one I will make sure it can be removed in a hurry.

As far as adding additional stress, if thought the AI & TI couldn't handle the stress added by a boom made of flexible tent poles I'd sell them both.

Interesting dosjers... a boom that can be quickly removed. It seem to be a contradiction in function if you will... something strong enough to make a difference in sail shape and yet easy to remove (or break down?). I'm intrigued... let us know what you come up with.

Haven't you seen Waterworld? Jerry's gonna use hydraulics hidden in the hull... press a button and a telescopic boom extends with a claw to grab the mainsail clew... whilst the front hatch opens to deploy a 200 sq ft spinnaker.... and the hydrofoils lower from amas and main hull... oh wait, maybe all that was in a dream I had.

You're psychic! My problem is getting a battery large enough to run the pump into my boat. Maybe I could convert a mirage drive to spin the pump since I don't use them to propel the boat when I sail anyway. Then I wouldn't need a battery or motor which would drastically cut down the weight.

Actually the flexible tent poles sound like a great idea but I'm wondering if I can use the same fitting on the tack and clew of the sail. Officially it might not be a boom if it's not attached to the mast but it would still help with sail shape.

My other option is to use a whisker pole to hold the sail out when running. The benefit of a whisker pole is that if I put the right fitting on it I could also use it to lower and raise my center board from the rear cockpit.

imo, adding a boom to the sail would be like adding an extra wheel to a motorbike. The shape of the sail should be determined by the strength and direction of the force applied by the mainsheet. No doubt the AI or TI have a compromise due to the fixed attachment point behind the seat. If necessary, it is possible to attach barber haulers from the AMAs to take the clew outboard when the mainsheet is released some, but it is arguable if the complexity is outweighed by yhe mall increase in speed. But I would certainly avoid any solid boom